Emerald City Comicon 2015 Recap Part Two: Stan Lee

By Chaz Lipp

Of all the big name stars on the Emerald City Comicon schedule this year (the convention ran March 27-29, 2015), perhaps no one supercharged those in attendance like Stan Lee. “The Man” kicked off day three of the convention. Though moderator Clare Kramer (an actress best known for her roles as Glory on Buffy the Vampire Slayer) had to relay most of the audience questions to him, the 92-year-old Lee was impressively energetic and good-humored. For the 3,000-plus assembled in the mail hall at the Washington State Convention Center, it was a chance to spend a little time with a true legend.

Perhaps the most special moment of the Stan Lee panel occurred when Marvel artist J. Scott Campbell made an unannounced appearance to present Lee with original artwork for Marvel’s new Star Wars comic book. Lee, who spent much of the panel candidly admitting (with tongue at least partially in cheek) how “greed” has motivated him throughout the years, joked that he would make a fortune selling the piece after the panel.

There were quite a few audience questions about Lee’s various cameos in and out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films – including his upcoming role in Kevin Smith’s Mallrats 2 (which Lee assured us will be more than a mere cameo). Lee joked that he gets asked to make so many guest appearances in all types of films, he become something of a cameo expert. He kiddingly credited his cameos as being the reason Marvel movies are so successful, saying people who miss his appearance wind up buying tickets again in order to catch him the second time around.

As a special treat for Stan Lee, moderator Clare Kramer helped organize hundreds of Marvel character-costumed attendees for an epic selfie taken from the main hall’s stage. Lee showed great appreciation for the devoted fans who took the time to honor his legacy.